WW2 Japanese Army Officer's Shin Gunto with
17C Family Blade, For Sale

In good condition, a WW2 Japanese Army Officer's Shin Gunto with
17th Century Family Blade, signed Nobukuni Heishiro Yoshimasa.

A really interesting war time sword because the officer owner was
clearly about show, as he had imperfections "fukure" repaired
with "Umegane", where the imperfection is painstakingly
cut out in a rectangle, filled with a special steel, and then a
thin layer from the original steel produced to cover it. For nihonto
collectors this is not good. But for militaria collectors, it speaks
of the Japanese officer's attitude towards flaws and need to eliminate
/ correct them irrespective of the cost. On this blade, there are
three Umegane; one has lost the thin layer, one is showing its edges,
the last is just visible. The blade is signed Nobukuni
Heishiro Yoshimasa (though the last kanji / characters are corroded),
a highly respected smith.

The 30 1/2 inch nagasa (cutting edge section) blade is in very
good condition with fairly high polish. Besides the Umegane, it
does have a small nick to the cutting edge, most likely from WW2.
The furniture (tsuba, tsuka, etc) are all tight and the seppa have
very bespoke numbering, which shows the original owner / officer
was very proud of his sword and blade. The saya has lost some of
its war time paint. The sword sheathes and draws well and the securing
catch mechanism works but does not locate; it is just shy of doing
so.

Despite the rare umegane affecting the aesthetics, this is a great,
very interesting shin gunto and a bargain at £1000. Please
quote item reference V39. Further / full sized images available
upon request. Box 0978-101x19x16 (2.021).